WELCOME TO THE CFZ BLOG NETWORK: COME AND JOIN THE FUN

Half a century ago, Belgian Zoologist Bernard Heuvelmans first codified cryptozoology in his book On the Track of Unknown Animals.

The Centre for Fortean Zoology (CFZ) are still on the track, and have been since 1992. But as if chasing unknown animals wasn't enough, we are involved in education, conservation, and good old-fashioned natural history! We already have three journals, the largest cryptozoological publishing house in the world, CFZtv, and the largest cryptozoological conference in the English-speaking world, but in January 2009 someone suggested that we started a daily online magazine! The CFZ bloggo is a collaborative effort by a coalition of members, friends, and supporters of the CFZ, and covers all the subjects with which we deal, with a smattering of music, high strangeness and surreal humour to make up the mix.

It is edited by CFZ Director Jon Downes, and subbed by the lovely Lizzy Bitakara'mire (formerly Clancy), scourge of improper syntax. The daily newsblog is edited by Corinna Downes, head administratrix of the CFZ, and the indexing is done by Lee Canty and Kathy Imbriani. There is regular news from the CFZ Mystery Cat study group, and regular fortean bird news from 'The Watcher of the Skies'. Regular bloggers include Dr Karl Shuker, Dale Drinnon, Richard Muirhead and Richard Freeman.The CFZ bloggo is updated daily, and there's nothing quite like it anywhere else. Come and join us...

Search This Blog

Loading...

Saturday, November 28, 2009

LINDSAY SELBY'S LOCH NESS ARCHIVE

Looking back at some archives of Nessie news I came across these items:

NESSIE will have clearer water to swim in after millions of pounds was invested in cleaning up her ‘home’. And, it is hoped, the improvements to the Loch Ness Monster’s surroundings will lead to more sightings. Scottish Water have just completed two projects worth over £2 million in the world famous stretch of water. Modern waste water treatment works have been installed at Foyers on the south shore of the loch, and at Balnain, near Drumnadrochit, on the north shore. Both works discharge a cleaner effluent into the rivers Foyers and Enrick, which flow into Nessie’s abode.

Gary Campbell, president of The Official Loch Ness Monster Fan Club, welcomed the news. He said: ‘It is great to see this improvement in the quality of Nessie’s habitat. There have only been a few sightings this year and I’m sure that cleaner water will mean Nessie is seen more .‘Seriously, this is good news for the many Nessie hunters who visit the area. A cleaner environment will encourage them to return.’ Nessie fan club president Gary Campbell is hopeful the cleaner water will make for more sightings.

Sheila Campbell-Lloyd, Scottish Water’s regional manager in the Highlands, added: ‘This is a brilliant example of Scottish Water investing to ensure that the Highlands remains a great place to live and visit. A cleaner environment makes for a better experience and that in turn should benefit the important tourist trade in the area.’

The £1.8 million treatment works located in Lower Foyers, near the lochside, has two septic tanks and filters which provide secondary treatment, which separates solid and liquid waste and is filtered down to produce a high quality effluent. It replaces a number of outdated septic tanks around Lower and Upper Foyers. By reducing the number of discharges to just one, the environment is now much more pleasant and the river and the loch are now much cleaner. At Balnain, the £300,000 project involves a new septic tank and reed bed system which protects the environment and boosts the water quality in the River Enrick. Scottish Water says reed beds use natural methods to break down sewage and recycle it into clean water. They don’t use any chemicals and reduce the risk of flooding, minimise odours, blend in well with the environment and provide habitats for wildlife.

The most recent Nessie sighting was last month when a young English couple holidaying in the Highlands claimed they encountered Nessie twice during their stay. Nick Thurston and his fiance Emma Louise Jones won a holiday to the Highland capital and spotted the monster whilst on a cruise. Their second sighting was a week later whilst driving near to Urquhart Castle. '

'Sidney Wilson was in the city with his wife Janet when they decided on a cruise down the loch to take in the sights. And it was as they approached Urquhart Castle that he ended up taking this intriguing photograph. Sidney, who comes from Nottingham, said: "I was just taking pictures of everything as we sailed down the loch. "As we approached the castle, two power boats appeared and circled us at speed, leaving a large wash in their wake. "Thinking that it would make a good photograph, I fired off two quick shots and on the second, there appeared to be something in the water." After enlarging the image, Sidney could swear he could see a head and fin in the boat's wash. "After showing the image to staff at the National Hotel in Dingwall, they advised us to contact the Highland News," he added. The sighting took place on Tuesday, March 27. The earliest claimed reference to Nessie is taken from the history of St Columba in which it is said he saved the life of a Pict who was being attacked by the monster. The first modern sighting occurred on May 2, 1933. A report in a local newspaper claimed a Mr and Mrs John Mackay saw "an enormous animal rolling and plunging on the surface". '

Well, the clean water doesn’t seem to have done the trick as there seem to have been less sightings since this was done. The sighting from 2007 looks like a seal; as there is no indication of size, I think that is what it would be put down to. I wonder if there have been fewer sightings or if people are just reluctant to report them

2 comments:

The water in Loch Ness has historically always been dingy and foul with virtually no visability underwater. It is in fact one of the worst imaginable places to actually FIND a monster even if you are searching diligently. And there has been a long-recurring suspicion that monsters are not a permanent feature of the lake, they (whatever they might be) come and go over time. There is even good evidence of more than one type of creature in the Loch at separate times or even possibly the same time (different types at the same time were alleged as far back as the 1930s)

Consider this on a smaller scale in a more familiar ecological analogue. The same river might easily contain a large otter, a large eel and a large turtle in a local area, and fishermen that were not familiar with the area might report all three of them as "something in the creek" based on only partial sightings. Any or all of the creatures might move to one area where food was plentiful or move away from areas that had been fished out at any time.

There have also been documented sightings of "Creatures" in the rivers running into and out of Loch Ness at various times, and those descriptions are as various as the reports of "Monsters" actually seen IN the Loch.

Having fallen in the loch more than once I can tell you it tastes foul too! The peat particles that come down in the run off from the hills into the loch make it murky. It also has a layer of silt at the bottom said to be at least 25 feet deep.It is interesting that you say there may be more than one type of creature and that would account for the differences in sightings.It wouldn't be the only lake in the world that seems to have different creatures in it according to eye witness accounts.Thanks for that thought Dale.

Read our Journal ... for Free

WATCH OUR MONTHLY WEBtv SHOW

THE CRYPTO SHOP

LATEST HITS

This blasted recession is really beginning to hit. Unlike some of our competitors we are not going to try and blackmail you into donating by saying that we won't continue if you don't. That would just be vulgar, but our lives, and those of the animals which we look after, would be a damn sight easier if we receive more donations to our fighting fund. Donate via Paypal today...

CLICK COVERS TO BUY DIGITAL VERSIONS OF OUR MAGAZINES FOR ONLY £2.50

SPECIAL OFFER: GET AN AUTOGRAPHED COPY OF THE BEST CRYPTOZOOLOGY BOOK OF THE YEAR

Richard Freeman's remarkable new book is now available. However, for some reason known only to themselves amazon.co.uk have listed it as taking 3-5 weeks to arrive.

This, dear friends is nonsense, but should you want to ensure earlier arrival then you can buy it here, personally autographed for the special discount price of £12.99 (post free in the UK) click the link below:

External Links to Sites we Like

CFZ APPEAL

In November Sahar Dimus, our guide on four CFZ Sumatra expeditions, died of liver failure leaving a widow Lucy and four Children. On the 2nd November, Dezyama D. Sangma, wife of our friend and colleague Dipu Marak, our collaborator on the 2010 Indian expedition died, leaving her grieving husband and two small children.

This year's CFZ appeal is to raise money for their two families. Please be generous.